Friday, June 20, 2014

This issue has a double dedication that to my granddaughter Avigail Yaffa
bas Asher Shalom and Zahava who is already Bas Mitzvah but having her party
this coming weekend. The second dedication is learning Torah for merits to
bring back the three kidnapped Yeshiva Boys healthy to their parents.

Shemos 6:18 And
the sons of Kohath: Amram, and Izhar, and Hebron, and Uzziel. And the years of
the life of Kohath were a hundred thirty and three years. 19 And the sons of Merari: Mahli and
Mushi. These are the families of the Levites according to their generations. 20 And Amram took him Jochebed his
father's sister to wife; and she bore him Aaron and Moses. And the years of the
life of Amram were a hundred and thirty and seven years. 21 And the sons of Izhar: Korah, and
Nepheg, and Zichri.

Birth wise Korach was after Moshe and Aaron to receive an authoritive
post. However see below that Elzaphan was given the task instead.

22 And
the sons of Uzziel: Mishael, and Elzaphan, and Sithri. 23 And Aaron took him Elisheba, the daughter of Amminadab, the
sister of Nahshon, to wife; and she bore him Nadab and Abihu, Eleazar and
Ithamar. 24 And the sons of
Korah: Assir, and Elkanah, and Abiasaph; these are the families of the
Korahites. … Bamidbar 3:27 And
of Kohath was the family of the Amramites, and the family of the Izharites, and
the family of the Hebronites, and the family of the Uzzielites; these are the
families of the Kohathites: 28
according to the number of all the males, from a month old and upward, eight
thousand and six hundred, keepers of the charge of the sanctuary. 29 The families of the sons of Kohath
were to pitch on the side of the tabernacle southward; 30 the prince of the fathers' house of the families of the
Kohathites being Elizaphan the son of Uzziel,

16:1 Now
Korah, the son of Izhar, the son of Kohath, the son of Levi, with Dathan and
Abiram, the sons of Eliab, and On, the son of Peleth, sons of Reuben, took men;

Korah…
took: He took himself to one side to
dissociate himself from the congregation, to contest the [appointment of Aaron
to the] kehunah. This is what Onkelos means when he renders it וְאִתְפְּלֵג,“and he separated himself.” He separated
himself from the congregation to persist in a dispute. Similarly, מה יקחך לבך, “Why does your heart take you away?” (Job 15:12) meaning, it removes you,
to isolate you from others (Midrash Tanchuma Korach 2). Another explanation: He
attracted the heads of the Sanhedrin among them with amicable words. Similarly,
“Take Aaron [with words]” (20:25); “Take words with you” (Hosea 14:3) (Midrash Tanchuma Korach
1). - [Num. Rabbah 18:2]

Took upon himself by force and not by prophecy or elected by the
people or ordained to such a position.

2 and
they rose up in face of Moses, with certain of the children of Israel, two
hundred and fifty men; they were princes of the congregation, the elect men of
the assembly, men of renown;

Dathan
and Abiram: Since the tribe of Reuben was settled in the south when they
camped, thus being neighbors of Kohath and his children who were also camped in
the south, they joined with Korah in his rebellion. Woe to the wicked, and woe
to his neighbor! Now what made Korah decide to quarrel with Moses? He envied
the chieftainship of Elizaphan the son of Uzziel whom Moses appointed as
chieftain over the sons of Kohath by the [Divine] word. Korah claimed, “My
father and his brothers were four [in number]” as it says, “The sons of Kohath
were…” (Exod. 6:18). Amram was the first, and his two sons received
greatness-one a king and one a kohen gadol. Who is entitled to receive the
second [position]? Is it not I, who am the son of Izhar, who is the second
brother to Amram? And yet, he [Moses] appointed to the chieftainship the son of
his youngest brother! I hereby oppose him and will invalidate his word (Midrash
Tanchuma Korach 1, Num. Rabbah 18:2). What did he do? He went and assembled two
hundred and fifty men, heads of Sanhedrin, most of them from the tribe of
Reuben, his neighbors. These were Elitzur the son of Shedeur and his
colleagues, and others like him, as it says, “chieftains of the congregation,
those called to the assembly.” And further it states, “These were the chosen
ones of the congregation” (1:16). He dressed them with cloaks made entirely of
blue wool. They came and stood before Moses and asked him, “Does a cloak made
entirely of blue wool require fringes [’tzitzith’], or is it exempt?” He
replied, “It does require [fringes].” They began laughing at him [saying],
"Is it possible that a cloak of another [colored] material, one string of
blue wool exempts it [from the obligation of techeleth], and this one, which is
made entirely of blue wool, should not exempt itself? - [Midrash Tanchuma Korach
2, Num. Rabbah 18:3]

Perkei Avos warns against bad neighbors in influences. On Ben
Peled from Gad was with Reuven and Shimon al the south side. He was also influenced
but he had a righteous wife who gave him so much drink that he slept and she
combed her hair in the tent and the people with Korach were to righteous to
look and question her so they turned away and his life was spared.

3 and
they assembled themselves together against Moses and against Aaron, and said
unto them: 'Ye take too much upon you, seeing all the congregation are holy,
every one of them, and the LORD is among them; wherefore then lift ye up
yourselves above the assembly of the LORD?'

Korach confronted Moshe with questions like what happens if the
whole garment is Techeles instead of just the fringes would it be exempt from
having fringes.

You
take too much upon yourselves: You took by far too much greatness for
yourselves. Are all holy: All of them heard [the] words [of the commandments]
at Sinai from the mouth of the Almighty. - [Midrash Tanchuma Korach 4] So why
do you raise yourselves: If you have taken kingship for yourself, you should
not have chosen kehunah for your brother. Not only you heard at Sinai, “I am
the Lord, your God” ; the entire congregation heard it. - [Midrash Tanchuma
Korach 4]

4 And
when Moses heard it, he fell upon his face.

And
fell on his face: because of the rebellion, for this was already their fourth
offense. [When] they sinned with the calf, “Moses pleaded” (Exod. 32:11); by
the episode of the complainers, “Moses prayed” (11:2); with the spies, “Moses
said to God, ‘But the Egyptians will hear…’ ” (14:13), but now, at Korah’s
rebellion, he became disheartened [literally, his hands were weakened]. This is
comparable to a prince who sinned against his father, and his [father’s] friend
placated the king on his behalf, once, twice, and three times. When he offended
the fourth time, the friend became disheartened, and he said, “How much more
can I trouble the king? Perhaps he will no longer accept my petition.” -
[Midrash Tanchuma 4, Num. Rabbah 18: 6]

Moshe was the humblest of men and wanted to scream and fight back
but instead he turned to HASHEM and fell on his face in the Tachanun prayer.

The main thing is avoid jealousy because of this horrible urge
Korach was destroyed husbands mistrust wives and vice versa often over little
things. One has to learn to be confident in their own abilities strengths and
weaknesses. Besides jealousy there is another destroyer in life and that is
anger and/or hate and one must learn to forgive others for their mistakes.

5 And he
spoke unto Korah and unto all his company, saying: 'In the morning the LORD
will show who are His, and who is holy, and will cause him to come near unto
Him; even him whom He may choose will He cause to come near unto Him. 6 This do: take you censors, Korah,
and all his company; 7 and put
fire therein, and put incense upon them before the LORD to-morrow; and it shall
be that the man whom the LORD doth choose, he shall be holy; ye take too much
upon you, ye sons of Levi.' 8
And Moses said unto Korah: 'Hear now, ye sons of Levi: 9 is it but a small thing unto you, that the God of Israel hath
separated you from the congregation of Israel, to bring you near to Himself, to
do the service of the tabernacle of the LORD, and to stand before the
congregation to minister unto them; 10
and that He hath brought thee near, and all thy brethren the sons of Levi with
thee? and will ye seek the priesthood also? 11 Therefore thou and all thy company that are gathered together
against the LORD--; and as to Aaron, what is he that ye murmur against him?' 12 And Moses sent to call Dathan and
Abiram, the sons of Eliab; and they said: 'We will not come up; 13 is it a small thing that thou hast
brought us up out of a land flowing with milk and honey, to kill us in the
wilderness, but thou must needs make thyself also a prince over us? 14 Moreover thou hast not brought us
into a land flowing with milk and honey, nor given us inheritance of fields and
vineyards; wilt thou put out the eyes of these men? we will not come up.' 15 And Moses was very wroth, and said
unto the LORD: 'Respect not Thou their offering; I have not taken one ass from
them, neither have I hurt one of them.'

At this point Moshe loses it as they refuse to obey his DIVINE
given authority. He turns to the L-RD and prayers.

Moses
was exceedingly distressed: Heb. וַיִּחַר לְמשֶׁה מְאֹד,
he was very grieved, [not that he was angry]. Do not accept their
offering: According to its simple meaning, [Moses said,] Do not accept the
incense that they will sacrifice before You tomorrow. According to its Midrashic
interpretation, he said: I know that they have a portion in the daily communal
offerings. Let their portions not be accepted favorably before You. Let the
fire leave it and not consume it. - [Midrash Tanchuma Korach 7, Num. Rabbah 10]
I have not taken a donkey from a single one of them: I did not take a donkey
from any one of them. Even when I went from Midian to Egypt, and I placed my
wife and sons on a donkey to ride, and I should have taken that donkey from
their property, I took only from my own property (Tanchuma Korach 7, Num.
Rabbah 10). Onkelos renders it as שְׁחָרִית,
‘expropriated.’ In Aramaic, the king’s service is called שַׁחְוַור.

16 And
Moses said unto Korah: 'Be thou and all thy congregation before the LORD, thou,
and they, and Aaron, to-morrow; 17
and take ye every man his fire-pan, and put incense upon them, and bring ye
before the LORD every man his fire-pan, two hundred and fifty fire-pans; thou
also, and Aaron, each his fire-pan.' 18
And they took every man his fire-pan, and put fire in them, and laid incense
thereon, and stood at the door of the tent of meeting with Moses and Aaron. 19 And Korah assembled all the
congregation against them unto the door of the tent of meeting; and the glory
of the LORD appeared unto all the congregation. 20 And the LORD spoke unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying: 21 'Separate yourselves from among
this congregation, that I may consume them in a moment.' 22 And they fell upon their faces, and
said: 'O God, the God of the spirits of all flesh, shall one man sin, and wilt
Thou be wroth with all the congregation?'

Please do not blame the whole congregation for the behavior of one
man leading a few rebellious souls. So he prays for the rest.

23 And
the LORD spoke unto Moses, saying: 24
'Speak unto the congregation, saying: Get you up from about the dwelling of
Korah, Dathan, and Abiram.' 25
And Moses rose up and went unto Dathan and Abiram; and the elders of Israel
followed him. 26 And he spoke
unto the congregation, saying: 'Depart, I pray you, from the tents of these
wicked men, and touch nothing of theirs, lest ye be swept away in all their
sins.' 27 So they got them up
from the dwelling of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram, on every side; and Dathan and
Abiram came out, and stood at the door of their tents, with their wives, and
their sons, and their little ones. 28
And Moses said: 'Hereby ye shall know that the LORD hath sent me to do all
these works, and that I have not done them of mine own mind.

Moshe warns them again to refrain and separate themselves. The
sons of Korach do not have the blind jealous of being passed over for the
prince of the Levi tribe and therefore think clear and go with Moshe.

29 If
these men die the common death of all men, and be visited after the visitation
of all men, then the LORD hath not sent Me. 30 But if the LORD make a new thing, and the ground open her
mouth, and swallow them up, with all that appertain unto them, and they go down
alive into the pit, then ye shall understand that these men have despised the
LORD.' 31 And it came to pass,
as he made an end of speaking all these words, that the ground did cleave
asunder that was under them. 32
And the earth opened her mouth and swallowed them up, and their households, and
all the men that appertained unto Korah, and all their goods. 33 So they, and all that appertained
to them, went down alive into the pit; and the earth closed upon them, and they
perished from among the assembly. 34
And all Israel that were round about them fled at the cry of them; for they
said: 'Lest the earth swallow us up.' 35
And fire came forth from the LORD, and devoured the two hundred and fifty men
that offered the incense.

Was this a regular strong earthquake or was there also lava
involved or a gas deposit vein there that fissured and exploded when the flames
of the candles hit it?

17:1 And the LORD spoke unto Moses,
saying: 2 'Speak unto Eleazar
the son of Aaron the priest, that he take up the fire-pans out of the burning,
and scatter thou the fire yonder; for they are become holy; 3 even the fire-pans of these men who
have sinned at the cost of their lives, and let them be made beaten plates for
a covering of the altar--for they are become holy, because they were offered
before the LORD--that they may be a sign unto the children of Israel.' 4 And Eleazar the priest took the brazen
fire-pans, which they that were burnt had offered; and they beat them out for a
covering of the altar, 5 to be a
memorial unto the children of Israel, to the end that no common man, that is
not of the seed of Aaron, draw near to burn incense before the LORD; that he
fare not as Korah, and as his company; as the LORD spoke unto him by the hand
of Moses.

I write here the simple
meaning of this and not the Medrash or Zohar on the rebellion.

6 But on the morrow all the
congregation of the children of Israel murmured against Moses and against
Aaron, saying: 'Ye have killed the people of the LORD.' 7 And it came to pass, when the congregation was assembled against
Moses and against Aaron, that they looked toward the tent of meeting; and,
behold, the cloud covered it, and the glory of the LORD appeared. 8 And Moses and Aaron came to the
front of the tent of meeting.

Perhaps you and I don’t get this because our
minds are educated in a certain way and Moshe and/or Aaron = miracles and Jews
are logical and not the type that is mob ruled. However, slaves that are
released don’t have this type of education or our luxuries and they act on a
survival impulse which in this case sparks a plague and the Angel of Death.

9 And the LORD spoke unto Moses,
saying: 10 'Get you up from
among this congregation, that I may consume them in a moment.' And they fell
upon their faces. 11 And Moses
said unto Aaron: 'Take thy fire-pan, and put fire therein from off the altar,
and lay incense thereon, and carry it quickly unto the congregation, and make
atonement for them; for there is wrath gone out from the LORD: the plague is
begun.'

Moshe loves his flock and does what he can to
save it. For when the Torah was given there is a Medrash that the Angels came
against Moshe. Moshe was afraid to reply but held on to the Throne of G-D so to
say and replied “Do you have other gods? Do you violate the Shabbos? Murder?
Commit adultery? Steal?” Immediately the Angels realized that the Torah was for
mankind. The Angel of Death told him the secret of the incense to avoid death.

12 And Aaron took as Moses spoke, and
ran into the midst of the assembly; and, behold, the plague was begun among the
people; and he put on the incense, and made atonement for the people. 13 And he stood between the dead and
the living; and the plague was stayed. 14
Now they that died by the plague were fourteen thousand and seven hundred,
besides them that died about the matter of Korah. 15 And Aaron returned unto Moses unto the door of the tent of
meeting, and the plague was stayed.

HASHEM intervenes on
Moshe’s behalf and puts an end to the rebellion with the flowering staff below.

16 And the LORD spoke unto Moses,
saying: 17 'Speak unto the
children of Israel, and take of them rods, one for each fathers' house, of all
their princes according to their fathers' houses, twelve rods; thou shalt write
every man's name upon his rod. 18
And thou shalt write Aaron's name upon the rod of Levi, for there shall be one
rod for the head of their fathers' houses. 19 And thou shalt lay them up in the tent of meeting before the
testimony, where I meet with you. 20
And it shall come to pass, that the man whom I shall choose, his rod shall bud;
and I will make to cease from Me the murmurings of the children of Israel,
which they murmur against you.' 21
And Moses spoke unto the children of Israel; and all their princes gave him
rods, for each prince one, according to their fathers' houses, even twelve
rods; and the rod of Aaron was among their rods. 22 And Moses laid up the rods before the LORD in the tent of the
testimony. 23 And it came to
pass on the morrow, that Moses went into the tent of the testimony; and,
behold, the rod of Aaron for the house of Levi was budded, and put forth buds,
and bloomed blossoms, and bore ripe almonds. 24 And Moses brought out all the rods from before the LORD unto
all the children of Israel; and they looked, and took every man his rod.

Finally the rebellions
came to an end. However, we shall see later on that in the case of lust that
was beyond control there would be misbehavior but not a rebellion of usurpation.

25 And the LORD said unto Moses: 'Put
back the rod of Aaron before the testimony, to be kept there, for a token
against the rebellious children; that there may be made an end of their
murmurings against Me, that they die not.' 26 Thus did Moses; as the LORD commanded him, so did he.

The Parsha ends with rules and responsibilities of the Cohanim and
Leviim regarding Korbanos and Teruma and Maaser.

In constructing the Mishkan,
m’ameir (gathering) involved binding sheaves together; it is the fourth of the
11 agricultural melachos. For practical purposes, m’ameir involves any
collecting of scattered produce. It doesn’t have to be fruit, though–anything
that grows from the ground is subject to m’ameir. For example, the m’kosheish
eitzim (gatherer of sticks) who desecrated Shabbos in parshas Shlach (Number
15:32) might have been guilty of m’ameir (although he might have been guilty of
kotzeir for breaking the sticks off of trees – see Talmud Shabbos 96b).

According to most authorities,
m’ameir only applies (a) to things that have not been previously gathered and
(b) only in the place where the things grow and their gathering normally
occurs. Therefore, if you knock the bowl of fruit off your host’s Shabbos
table, it’s okay to pick up the fruit and put it back in the bowl. However, if
produce scatters outside, one is rabbinically prohibited from gathering it as a
weekday activity that is dangerously close to m’ameir (see Talmud Shabbos
143b).

Additionally, once produce has
been processed, such as weaving wool into a garment or carving a stick into a
wooden spoon, m’ameir no longer applies.

Geology 102 the truth about Global Warming

I
bought a book called “Geology Underfoot in Yellowstone Country" by
Professor Marc S. Hendrix. He writes on page 101 in the 2011 edition the
following: Indeed the temperature was significantly warmer during Eocene Times
based on marine life. Temperatures in the Polar Region was 9 Deg. F. or 5 Deg.
C warmer. ... At Global Peak the temperatures were 22 Deg. F. or 12 Deg. C.
warmer. THIS WAS NOT MAN MADE CARBON EMISSIONS BUT A NATURAL PROCESS.

What do you look for
in a wife if you really are rich? The following is what a women posted on a
dating forum seeking a rich husband:

I’m going to be honest of what I’m going to
say here. I’m 25 this year. I’m very pretty, have style and good taste. I wish
to marry a guy with $500k annual salary or above. You might say that I’m
greedy, but an annual salary of $1M is considered only as middle class in New
York.

My requirement is not high. Is there anyone in
this forum who has an income of $500k annual salary? Are you all married? I
wanted to ask: what should I do to marry rich persons like you?

Among those I’ve dated, the richest is $250k
annual income, and it seems that this is my upper limit.
If someone is going to move into high cost residential area on the west of New
York City Garden (?), $250k annual income is not enough.

I’m here humbly to ask a few questions:

1) Where do most rich bachelors hang out?
(Please list down the names and addresses of bars, restaurant, gym)
2) Which age group should I target?
3) Why most wives of the riches are only average-looking? I’ve met a few girls
who don’t have looks and are not interesting, but they are able to marry rich
guys.
4) How do you decide who can be your wife, and who can only be your girlfriend?
(My target now is to get married)
Ms. Pretty

A philosophical reply from CEO of J.P. Morgan
below:

Dear Ms. Pretty,
I have read your post with great interest. Guess there are lots of girls out
there who have similar questions like yours. Please allow me to analyze your
situation as a professional investor.
My annual income is more than $500k, which meets your requirement, so I hope
everyone believes that I’m not wasting time here.
From the standpoint of a business person, it is a bad decision to marry you.
The answer is very simple, so let me explain.

Put the details aside, what you’re trying to
do is an exchange of “beauty” and “money”: Person A provides beauty, and Person
B pays for it, fair and square.
However, there’s a deadly problem here, your beauty will fade, but my money
will not be gone without any good reason. The fact is, my income might increase
from year to year, but you can’t be prettier year after year.

Hence from the viewpoint of economics, I am an
appreciation asset, and you are a depreciation asset. It’s not just normal
depreciation, but exponential depreciation. If that is your only asset, your
value will be much worse 10 years later.

By the terms we use in Wall Street, every
trading has a position, dating with you is also a “trading position”.
If the trade value dropped we will sell it and it is not a good idea to keep it
for long term – same goes with the marriage that you wanted. It might be cruel
to say this, but in order to make a wiser decision any assets with great
depreciation value will be sold or “leased”.

Anyone with over $500k annual income is not a
fool; we would only date you, but will not marry you. I would advise that you
forget looking for any clues to marry a rich guy. And by the way, you could
make yourself to become a rich person with $500k annual income. This has better
chance than finding a rich fool.

Around three
o'clock in the morning he called the former Sepharadic chief rabbi, Rabbi
Mordechai Eliyahu.Connection: Seasonal--4th yahrzeit of R.M.E. on
Sunday night - Monday, Sivan 25 (June 22-23).

A young man in Israel, who was
not that particular about keeping the mitzvot, heard a Talmudic story about the
man who made a bet with somebody that he would be able to cause Hilled the
Elder to become angry. The man came to Hillel's house on a Friday afternoon
when Hillel was in the bath. Time after time he disturbed Hillel with all kinds
of foolish questions. Nevertheless, Hillel did not become angry.

The young man who heard this
story wanted to know if the rabbis of today possess that same quality of
patience. He thought to himself: "The rabbis certainly all know this
story, and maybe they also use the story in their sermons. I want to find out
if they indeed practice what they preach."

He prepared a telephone list
with a number of important rabbis. At two o'clock in the morning he phoned up
the first rabbi on the list and asked him: "What blessing do you make over
an apple coated with honey?"

The answer was not long in
coming: "Can't you call me at a more normal hour in order to ask questions
like these??!" and the rabbi slammed the receiver.

Our acquaintance continued to
phone up rabbi after rabbi, call after call. The reactions were all the same,
indignation for waking them up in the middle of the night for such a minor
matter.

Around three o'clock in the
morning he called the former Sephardic chief rabbi, Rabbi Mordechai Eliyahu.

When the rabbi picked up the
phone, the man asked: "Can I ask you a Halachic question?"

"Certainly", the rabbi
replied. "Just tell me if the question can be delayed until I'll wash my
hands."

The young man agreed, and after
a short while the voice of Rabbi Eliyahu could be heard: "Yes, I'm ready
to listen."

When the man presented his
inquiry concerning the sugar coated apple, the rabbi gave him an elaborate
answer and explained to him all the Halachic details involved.

Finally he added: "You may
call me and ask me any question you like, and whenever you want!"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Source: Adapted/supplemented by Yerachmiel Tilles from "Chassidic
Gems" by Tuvia Litzman, who heard it from a friend of the questioner.

Biographical notes:
Rabbi Mordechai Eliyahu (1929-25 Sivan 2010), the former Chief Sephardic Rabbi
of Israel, was born in Iraq. A noted sage in all areas of Torah study, as well
as a significant Kabbalist, he was considered to be one of the leading
authorities on Jewish law in Israel. His son, Rabbi Shmuel Eliyahu, is
currently the Chief Sephardic Rabbi of Tzefat.

Jews across Israel and the world are consumed with worry and fear for the lives
of Eyal Yifrach, Gilad Shaarand Naftali Frenkel, the three boys kidnapped by terrorists in Gush Etzion this past week, on
Thursday, June 12, 2014. Since then, the Israel Defense Forces and intelligence
establishment have launched Operation Brother's Keeper and are leaving no stone
unturned in their efforts to locate the teens and, with God’s help, return them
to their parents unharmed.

Notwithstanding that ongoing heroic operation, the Jewish nation, since its
inception, has known that in addition to such efforts on the ground, it must
also “grasp the tools of their ancestors,” and appeal to God through Torah,
tefillah (prayer), and ma’asim tovim (good deeds).

To that end, the Orthodox Union, with its international youth movement, NCSY,
and its Department of Community Engagement and Synagogue Services, and in
partnership with Bnei Akiva and the Rabbinical Council of America (RCA), is
launching a “virtual vigil” - an
around-the-clock schedule of learning, prayer, and mitzvot, performed by
OU/NCSY members and partners throughout the world. It is the hope of all
involved that through these earnest efforts in the merit of Gilad Michoel ben Bat Galim, Yaakov Naftali ben Rachel Devorah and Eyal ben Iris
Teshura,Hashem will see fit to
bring them home safely and quickly.

Individuals interested in participating can go to www.ncsy.org/bring-back-boys and fill out a simple form to select a day and a 30-minute
slot, and identify what activity they are committing to for that time. While it
is our deepest desire that this campaign will become unnecessary even as it is
launched, it is also our intent to continue this project non-stop until our
boys are brought home.

i want
to thank Barry Shaw﻿, Valerie﻿ and Shona﻿for showing pictures of US Tanks and Humvees in the hands of the
terrorists: America spilled blood and treasure in Iraq including 4500 lives,
$17 billion in military training to Iraqi forces, and $15 billion in military
equipment. Now ISIS terrorists are seen driving around in American military
Humvees.

The
United States embassy in Baghdad is the largest global American embassy. It has
15,000 workers. It would be wrong to say that they did not pick up intelligence
on the gathering Islamic terror storm. They did, and it fed it up the chain to
the State Department and the White House, for months. Neither of those bodies
acted on the intel. As one staffer told Lt. Colonel Ralph Peters, “We couldn’t
convince the President that this is serious!”

Now the
Baghdad embassy could be under ISIS fire, making Benghazi look like child’s
play. And attack on Americans will not end there.

Now for M. Wolfberg’s Good Shabbos stories “Bullet Proof Vest” and
“Runaway”

Good Shabbos
Everyone.In this week’s portion Shlach Hashem commands us
regarding the mitzvah of tzitzis. The Rabbis tell us that the mitzvah of
tzitzis symbolizes the 613 mitzvahs of the Torah. Rashi explains that there are
5 sets of double knots on each group of 8 strings. The gematria – numerical
equivalent of the word tzitzis is 600. 600 plus 5 double knots, plus 8 strings
= 613, the number of mitzvahs in the Torah!
Thus, tzitzis symbolize the
entire Torah. As the verse states: “And you will look at it (the
thread) and you will remember all the Mitzvahs of Hashem and you will do
them...” (Bamidbar 15:39) Therefore, tzitzis have tremendous spiritual
power, because one who wears tzitzis is like one who wraps his body in a Sefer
Torah! The following amazing true story illustrates the power of the mitzvah of
tzitzis
In the 1980's, the Law Offices
of Allen Rothenberg was one of the biggest shomer Shabbos (Shabbos
observant) law offices in Pennsylvania. When David Chaim Novitsky graduated
from law school in 1986, it was natural for him to seek a job with the Allen
Rothenberg law firm.
That May marked the first
anniversary of the bombing of the radical Move group in Philadelphia. One
year before, the police had dropped a bomb on a fortified house, which was
barricaded by the members of Move. The purpose of the bomb was to force the
group out of the house. What the police had not known about, however, were the
flammable explosives that were stored in the attic of the house. The bomb
caused a fire to break out, which spread to all the houses in a two-block
radius. By the time the dust had cleared, nearly two hundred people had become
homeless, and the city had a number of lawsuits on its hands.
The Law Firm of Allen
Rothenberg picked up twelve of these clients. Since the houses were in a poorer
section of the city, the lawyers did not expect to make much profit from these
cases. It would, however, be a perfect first case for a new junior lawyer. And
so the twelve cases wound up in the hands of David C. Novitsky, the newest
member of the firm.
David was optimistic. After
all, this was one of his first cases, and he was determined to give it his best
shot (no pun intended…) and show the law firm what he could do. And so David
worked tirelessly, putting in long hours and employing all the means at his
disposal to see to it that his clients got the compensation that they deserved.
Ernest Bostic, age fifty, was
one of David's clients. And Ernest Bostic was very eager to get his money.
Bostic had a police record; he had already served time in jail, and he was used
to getting what he wanted, when he wanted it. He had no time for long,
drawn-out lawsuits. David's long hours and verbose explanations did not placate
him in the least.
Before long, Bostic was a
weekly fixture at the law firm. "What's taking so long?" he
would demand of his hardworking lawyer . "We’re dealing with the
city, Mr. Bostic," David would explain. "Everything takes a
long time when you deal with the city. Why, even after the lawsuit is settled,
it will still be a while before you get your money. Please, just be
patient."
But Ernest Bostic was not
convinced. He simply could not understand how the case could be taking so long.
Eventually, he decided that it was David Chaim Novitsky who was holding out on
him.
One night, after an exhausting
day at the law firm, David had a horrifying dream. He dreamed that he was in
his office when a man suddenly came up to him, pulled out a gun and shot him.
David woke up in a panic. His
heart was pounding and his head was whirling. Should he disregard the dream?
Did it signify anything? After a restless night, David finally decided that it
wouldn't hurt to take some precautions.
David's precautions took the
form of added protection-in the shape of tzitzis. David resolved to wear his
tzitzis at all times. After all, if anything could protect him, tzitzis
certainly would.
A few days after his dream,
David was standing in his office at the law firm when Ernest Bostic stopped by
for his weekly visit. David drew a deep breath, intending to placate him with
his usual speech about being patient. But Bostic didn't give him a chance.
Bostic had convinced himself that the long delay was all David's fault, and he
had come prepared to deal with that. Before David could get a word out, Bostic
pulled a gun out of his pocket and pointed it straight at him.
David turned instinctively and
began to run into his boss's office. Bostic shot six bullets into David's back,
but David managed to keep on running until he got into the office, where he
collapsed. Bostic ran for his life. The law offices were on the ninth floor,
and there was no time to wait for an elevator, so Bostic took the stairs,
leaping down them two at a time. Even a twisted ankle that he sustained on
landing didn't slow him down. Ignoring the agonizing pain, Bostic managed to
leave the building and head for the central bus station.
Back at the law firm, an
ambulance arrived in record time and took David to Jefferson Medical College
hospital, two blocks away. One of the top professors was available, and he
whisked David straight into surgery. David's family was notified, and they
quickly headed for the hospital, where they were informed that the operation
was still in progress.
David's parents paced the
waiting room, with prayers on their lips and entreaties in their hearts.
Finally, the door to the operating room swung open, and the professor emerged.
He looked from one member of the family to the other . "It's simply a
miracle,” he said finally. “I've never seen anything like it.”“What happened?” David's
mother whispered. “I simply can't believe it,” the professor said again.
“Every single bullet was just a fraction of an inch away from hitting a
vital organ. But I must caution you. We've only found five bullets so far.
There is a sixth one that is still unaccounted for. He won't be out of danger
until…”
The door to the operating room
swung open again, and the professor's assistant ran out. "We found the
sixth bullet! It was in his arm!"
The professor smiled at David's
parents. "Well, I guess we've found all the bullets. I'll go finish up
the operation. It looks like your son will be all right.""Baruch
Hashem," David's father whispered.
The family stood there, tears
rolling down their cheeks, as they thanked Hashem for His great chesed -
kindness. "Give thanks to Hashem for He is good, for His kindness
endures forever!" Meanwhile, back at police
headquarters, a search was underway for Ernest Bostic. As David had been
carried into the ambulance for his trip to the hospital, a police officer had
asked him if he knew who had shot him. David had managed to name his assailant
before losing consciousness. Now the police had an all-points bulletin out for
Ernest Bostic. But Bostic had already made it to the bus station before the
alarm went out, and by the time the police started their search, he was already
out of Philadelphia and heading to Detroit.
Bostic arrived in Detroit,
penniless and in pain. He entered a mission, hoping to spend the night there.
But the mission's policy was to impound any weapons that their guests might be
carrying. "You'll get it back when you leave," he was told.
Bostic tried to rest, but the
pain in his leg was worsening, and he needed medical attention. He headed for
the nearest hospital emergency room.
The emergency room staff asked
him where he was from as part of their routine questions. "Pennsylvania,"
was his initial reply. But then his fear got the better of him, and before he
knew it, he was blurting out the whole story."I come from
Philadelphia, and I just killed my lawyer!" Bostic was
immediately arrested and brought back to Philadelphia, where he was tried and
sentenced to jail for his crime.
But to David Chaim Novitsky,
the lesson was clear. He recalled the dream that he had had just a few nights
before the shooting. And he knew, without a doubt, that it was his tzitzis
which had guided each bullet so it would miss every vital organ-and spare his
life. (Visions of Greatness, Rabbi Yosef Weiss)
Every Jewish male has the
opportunity t Every Jewish male
has the opportunity to fulfill the mitzvah of tzitzis throughout the whole day
by wearing a “talis katan”, a small, lightweight four-corned garment with
tzitzis. It can be worn discretely, without anyone knowing.Good Shabbos Everyone.

Good Shabbos
Everyone.In the days of Reb Yaakov Yitzchok of Lublin (The “Chozeh” or
“Seer” of Lublin) there was a very well respected Rabbi in the same town who
was not Chassidic. This local Rabbi did not usually seek the advice of the
“Chozeh,” however, it happened once that the local Rabbi was perplexed and
could find no answer to a difficult question. The local Rabbi eventually
resorted to making his way to the famous “Chozeh” to ask the question which had
tormented him for so long. "Why, rebbe,"
he asked, "do so many thousands flock to you from all sides! What do
they see in you? Why don't they come to me? For am I not a greater scholar than
your are?""To tell you the
truth," said the Chozeh calmly, "I am as amazed as
you are. Because I know that I am not holding on a high spiritual level.
Why then should people come to me in search of ways to grow closer to Hashem?
In fact, they should go to visit you. For you are a
scholar with an unquestioned reputation, a veritable Mount Sinai
in Torah knowledge.”"But perhaps here lies
the catch,” continued the Chozeh. “Because I
am surprised that people do
come to me, that is why they come to me; and because you are surprised that
they do not come
to you, that is why, rabbi, they do not come to you..." (A Treasury
of Chassidic Tales, Rav Zevin, p.421)
A man once complained to Reb
Simcha Bunim of Parshischo, saying “The Talmud (Eruvin 13a) states that when
a person runs away from honor, honor will run after him. I run away from honor,
but honor does not pursue me.”“The reason,” explained the Reb
Simcha Bunim, “is because you keep looking back, and therefore it hides from
you.”(Gateway To Happiness, Reb Zelig Pliskin, p.283, citing Simchas Yisroel , p.57)
We read about honor seeking in
this week’s Torah portion Korach
. Korach “had it all,” but it was not enough. As Moshe said to
Korach, “Is it not enough for you that the G-d of Yisroel has segregated you
from the assembly of Yisroel to draw you near to Him [Hashem], to perform [as a
Levi] the service of the Mishkan of Hashem, and to stand before the assembly to
minister to them? And He drew you near, and all your brethren, the offspring of
Levi, with you-- yet you seek priesthood (to be a Kohen) as well?!?”(Bamidbar
16:9-10)
When Korach failed to receive
the honor he felt he deserved, Korach attempted to stage a revolt against
Moshe. We see how Korach’s search for honor eventually caused his own death and
the death of many others who supported him. The world literally swallowed up
Korach. As the Sages tell us “Jealously, lust and glory-seeking remove a man
from this world.”(Avos 4:28)
When the "Chozeh" was
rebbe in Lublin, the city's rabbinical seat was then occupied by Rabbi Azriel
Horovitz, whose Torah knowledge was so incredible that he was nicknamed "the
iron-headed." He made it his business to constantly bother
the Chozeh with all kinds of questions. Reb Azriel used to especially bother
the Chozeh on one issue, namely: The Chozeh himself knew that he was not a
Rebbe, yet he nevertheless continued to draw a large following after him
and teach them his ways. "But what can I do about it,"
argued the Chozeh, "if they all make the long journey here without my
urging?""Simple," said
the Reb Azriel. "Next Shabbos announce to your followers that you are
not a rebbe, and then they will leave you alone and stop coming to you."
Sure enough, the
"Chozeh" faithfully took his advice. The very next Shabbos he stood
up meekly before his congregation, and told them in plain, quiet words that he
was really a man of very poor worth indeed. The effect, though, was not as
expected. His chassidim were so moved by the genuine self-effacement of their
rebbe that they made every attempt to learn from his humility, and sought to be
even closer to the "Chozeh" than ever before.
When the "Chozeh"
next met Reb Azriel, he told him that he had followed the advice, but to
no avail. Reb Azriel now had an alternative suggestion: "Your chassidim
love humility and run away from arrogance. Tell your followers, therefore, that
you are a true tzaddik (a righteous Rabbi). Then they will be sure to go home
and leave you in peace." "I may not be a
rebbe," responded the Chozeh, "but I am not a liar either. How,
then will I be able to get up and say that I am a true tzaddik?" (A
Treasury of Chassidic Tales, Rav Zevin, p.422)
Honor seekers are so desperate
for honor, that if they don’t receive honor, they are unhappy. An honor
seeker, for example, will have a "bad day" if the check-out clerk in
the supermarket treats him disrespectfully. Usually, when one gets
upset for not being treated well, one is in fact suffering from honor
seeking. Because, in effect he is saying, "Hey, you can't treat me that
way! I am a very important person. I deserve respect!"
Thus, the happiness of an honor seeker depends on others.
Ideally, our happiness in life
should come from inside, not outside. Because, if our happiness Ideally, our
happiness in life should come from inside, not outside. Because, if our
happiness is dependent on others, we set ourselves up for
disappointment. But if our happiness is independent of others, then we
will be happier more of the time. Good Shabbos Everyone.M. Wolfberg is sponsored by: L'illui Nishmas Aryeh
Leib ben Avrohom and Malka bas Tzvi Refuah Shleima to Reb Mordechai Mendel ben Tziporah Yitta Refuah Shleima to Leah bas Tziporah